Sorry folks, as well as Nate Thompson played for the last week this should not be Scott Gordon's only forward on the ice shorthanded in overtime.

This is a player claimed off waivers with some enforcer skills but this is not a player you look at as part of a youth movement or should be in such a critical role, he won a faceoff to clear the puck at the start of the Flyer powerplay but also fanned on a clearing attempt just before the game winner.

Either way that is not the point here, I would ask the same question if Thompson went end to end and scored the game winner.

After the Islanders overtime powerplay that spent too much time on the perimeter with no speed outside of Mark Streit on the ice, Andy Hilbert and Richard Park came out as Scott Gordon's forwards.

Hard workers? Absolutely.

Players who are likely to score a goal or create a play to win the game? No, what you see is what you get and the career resume does not lie.

I have written a few times about all the over thirty players on the roster and even though Thompson and Hilbert do not fit that these cannot be called high end prospects at this point.

I'm not seeing some of this by Scott Gordon unless he is falling into the same trap Ted Nolan did playing some veterans which is partly because players like Hilbert and Park are stronger defensively to keep his team in the game.

To be fair also Scott Gordon had the young players on some powerplays and Nielsen set up the overtime goal in Tampa.

I think some Islander fans are under the impression Garth Snow said this team is having a youth movement or a rebuilding, he never said this but his coach does have to give the youth more chances with the game on the line.

If the idea is to play the youth more where was Kyle Okposo or Bergenheim, Nielsen for that powerplay?

Mitch Fritz over Tambellini? Not seeing that either.

I'm still wondering how Blake Comeau is not on this roster or Colliton, Joensuu, Marcinko and a few others like Hennigar or Iggulden or Trevor Smith. Ben Walter is finally getting healthy but after getting a shot here last year does not even seem on the radar.

If Scott Gordon is going to lean more on the vets Garth Snow might as well sign Brendan Shanahan's shot and send Fritz/Thompson to the AHL and make a choice between Park and Hilbert. ************************************************Anyone else think the Flyer forward tucked Nielsen's stick under his arm and held on as Hilbert kind of did to draw the Isles overtime powerplay?

Nielsen took his shot one against three. ************************************************For those wondering why the faceoff for the Flyer powerplay at the end of the game was in the Islanders end of the ice the new NHL rule says all powerplays start in the offensive zone. ************************************************I do not think Gervais batting the puck into the stands is a delay of game as long as he is not on his side of the blueline unless that rule changed also.

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